Inscription
Located in Fayette and Westmoreland Counties, the region's abundant high quality Pittsburgh vein coal yielded superior coke, used to smelt iron. This refined form of coal was produced in beehive ovens from the mid-19th century to the 1970s. Immigrant and migrant workers who settled here after the Civil War provided labor for the booming coke industry.
Byproduct ovens built near steel mills eventually rendered beehives obsolete.
Location
Sources
More markers in Fayette
Braddock Park
Gen. Edward Braddock was buried here in 1755, after his disastrous defeat and death.
Mount Washington Tavern
This building erected in 1816 was once a famous hostelry on the National Road.
Fort Necessity
Col. George Washington on May 29, 1754 began a fort here.
Colonel William Crawford - PLAQUE
Connellsville, PA
In memory of Colonel William Crawford, born in Berkeley County, Virginia, in 1732.
National Road
Hopwood, PA
From the creation of the National Road in 1806 until the advent of the railroads in the 1850s, thousands of travellers crossed Chestnut...
